Hole in my Heart
by Teenlaunch
Summary: The Forbidden Forest is a dark and trecherous place. See what happens when one girl is dragged into a man's life who has no idea he is important to the world. This is a one shot. It is not a long one shot, so, don't try to get me to update by bugging me.


Hole in My Heart

By: Teenlaunch

a/n: This will be a one shot. There is nothing else I can do to it. Please recommend it to others because I want as many reviews as I can get. Then I might get my next story out sooner.

Hagrid sighed heavily as he trudged up to the castle through the thick snow. His faithful boarhound, Fang, followed close behind. Hagrid slowly made his way to Dumbledore's office. When he was standing in front of the Headmaster, Hagrid held out a torn, bloody, and faded cloak. The Headmaster took it from him solemnly. Dumbledore looked at his Gamekeeper in disbelief, his eyes asking his unspoken question. Hagrid shook his head sadly.

It became the talk of the school. Draco Malfoy was missing. He had disappeared over the weekend. Hagrid had found nothing but his cloak in the Forbidden Forest. Many believed he was dead, but others thought he would turn up again soon. But he didn't. Many mourned him. His professors comforted one another and tried to decide who would tell his parents. Dumbledore interrupted them. He assured them that many students would write their parents who would pass the news to the Malfoys.

Three months passed and most every one now believed Draco was dead. Blaise took up Draco's place as the Slytherin "King". Stories were still being told through the school about his demise, but the truth was that no one knew exactly what lived in the forest.

Dumbledore checked each common room every now and then to make sure everything was shipshape. It was during one of these particular visits to the Gryffindor tower when he pulled aside Hermione Granger. He led her silently to his office. There they were greeted by three other students. Dumbledore sat down and asked them to as well. He slowly began to explain the events which had occurred over the past few months. He explained carefully so as to not miss any details.

"Alright, now that you have heard the terrible news yet again, I want to tell you the good news. Over the three Draco-less months this school has experienced, I have taken notice of some small things others haven't. Only one person came to me and told me Draco was gone. I will let him explain. Blaise, will you please tell the others what you found?" The one Slytherin in the room stood up. He shifted uncomfortably under the gaze of his fellow students.

"Um, yes…I first of all want to thank you all for coming. I handpicked you all for this special assignment, but we'll get to that in a minute." Blaise sighed. "I was the one who first realized that Draco was gone. Many people don't realize that Draco did have friends. I was his closest. I hadn't seen Draco all day so I went up to his room to try and find him. He wasn't there. All his stuff was gone except most of his clothes. I went to the Headmaster. He sent Hagrid into the forest. Of course, you all know what he found: a bloody cloak. Over the past few months, Dumbledore has noticed a few things, things many would pay no notice to.

"Last time Hagrid went into the forest he found a small piece of fabric. The time before that Hagrid met up with one of the more friendly centaurs and he told him there was someone on the grounds in need of help. I've also thought of something. Why were all Draco's books gone? I think he's in that forest and he's just hiding from us. Why? I don't know. What I do know is I picked the three other students I wish to accompany me on a last search of the Forbidden Forest. Hagrid will escort us to the end of the path. Then we will split three ways. Ernie, you and Terry will go one way. Hagrid will take another. Last, Hermione and I will take the last direction. Any questions? No? Good! Let's go!"

Blaise led the way to Hagrid's. The others trudged behind him, conversing in low whispers.

"You think it's a trick?" Ernie asked.

"He can't really still be alive, can he?" Hermione asked in return.

"I thought the Slytherins were all stuck up. Blaise actually asked for help!" Terry murmured.

"I know. I mean, I'm not too surprised he asked you two. What about me? Why did he pick me? I'm a 'Mudblood', remember?" Hermione asked.

"Hey, that's right!" Ernie said.

"I told you, I think it's a trap," Terry said.

"Well, I- "

"Hey, are you all coming or not?" Blaise yelled as he stopped beside Hagrid. "Hurry up! If we don't start now we'll be caught in the dark!"

"We're coming!" Hermione yelled.

"Are you sure you will be okay? I mean, he is Blaise! He might try something," Ernie said.

"I'll be fine! Don't worry!" Hermione said.

"Okay. Have it your way," Terry said as their small troop came to a halt. It was the end of the path.

"Well," Hagrid said. "I hate for us all to split up, but it's best. Right, I'll go east. Ernie 'nd Terry, you two go west. Hermione 'nd Blaise, you two continue north." Everyone split up silently.

Hermione watched Terry and Ernie until they disappeared. Blaise led the way. They tore through brambles and forced their way through tight spaces. Eventually, Blaise slowed down. He crouched low to the ground and Hermione came up behind him.

"What is it?" Hermione asked.

"Look, what do you see?" Hermione crouched down beside Blaise.

"I don't see anything."

"You don't?"

"No."

"Draco's been here."

"How do you know?"

"There's a piece of faded cloth caught on the bush over there and there's a very faint imprint of a sneaker here. It looks like it's been here a long time, probably since the day he disappeared. That's not too promising." Blaise stood up and sighed. "Let's rest."

"K." Hermione sat down on a fallen tree. Blaise sat beside her. They were both silent. After a few minutes, Blaise stood back up.

"We should go."

"Yeah," Hermione said as she stood. She hesitated for a minute. "Hey, Blaise?"

"Yes?"

"Why did you pick me to come with you?"

Blaise sighed. "I knew it…Hermione, the truth is…I think I know why Draco came here."

"What are you saying? That I'm that reason?"

"Partly." Blaise started walking. Hermione followed him quickly.

"What do you mean? Partly?"

"I mean it was partly because of you he ran away and partly because of…family related matters. But then, I'm not totally sure."

"What do I have to do with this!"

"Listen," Blaise said as he turned to her. "Draco…Draco may have always acted like a complete git- "

"- Because he was!"

"Excuse me. He may have always acted like a complete git but it was because he was a Slytherin! Up 'till our fifth year Draco believed all that pureblood rubbish! Over the past year or two Draco's point of view changed.

"Another reason I picked you is because I'm not like the other Slytherins. I have never insulted you in my life, have I?" Hermione thought for a moment and shook her head. "Come on, we're losing time." They pressed on in silence.

"Hermione? Hermione?" Blaise said.

"What? What's wrong?"

"Just what kinds of creatures live in this forest?"

"A bit of everything. Why?"

"Because I don't like the sound I'm hearing. Can you hear it?"

"You mean that clicking noise?"

"Yeah. Have you heard it before?"

"No, but I have an idea of what's making it."

"You do?"

"Yeah, and it's not good."

"What is it?"

There was a loud snap behind them and a loud rustling above. Blaise turned. Hermione looked up.

"Don't look now, but I think we have company," Hermione muttered.

"And they don't look too friendly either." Four spiders were closing in on them. Blaise looked around quickly. "There's no way out."

"Let's make one then."

"What?" Hermione pulled out her wand and blasted a whole in the brush. Hermione and Blaise ran. "Hermione, look out!"

Hermione tripped and rolled down a hill. Two spiders followed her. Hermione pushed herself to her feet. She continued running blindly into the heart of the forest. Eventually, the spiders lost her. When Hermione finally stopped the sun had started to sink down in the sky. Hermione sat down on an uprooted tree and berthed heavily. The tree above her rustled. Hermione looked up. There was nothing there. The bush across from her shook. Hermione's eyes snapped onto the bush. It continued to shake. It grew louder. A creature hopped out of the bush. It was a hawk. It looked strangely familiar to her. It eyed her beadily. Hermione and the hawk stared at each other for a minute.

The sound of heavy footfalls and labored breathing startled them. Blaise stumbled through the brush from behind Hermione. She gave him a relieved sigh. Blaise smiled but his expression froze when his eyes met the hawk's eyes. Blaise's lips formed words but he seemed to have lost his voice. The hawk started to back away.

"No…" Blaise groaned. "Please, don't go1" The hawk glared at him. "I don't care if you don't want to go back. You have to! Please? Don't leave…I miss you…" The hawk's head reared. "That's right. People miss you. Potter even misses you. He said there's no challenge during Quidditch now…since…Listen, if you won't come back will you at least tell me why you left? I've already told Hermione my suspicions but-" Blaise leapt back as the hawk lunged at him. The hawk stopped and looked at Hermione then back at Blaise.

The hawk straightened and looked defiantly at them. As the three stared at each other, the hawk began to grow. The feathers on his head lightened to a white blond. The feathers on his wings and legs paled. His beak pushed into his face to form a nose and mouth. His eyes stayed the same, blank and staring. Blaise gasped. Hermione's eyes widened. The hawk she had seen hanging around Hogwarts had been…

"Draco…" Blaise breathed.

"What did you tell her?" Draco croaked.

Hermione's eyes roved his body. He was paler than she remembered. He had become thinner. He was covered head to foot in mud and dirt. His hair was a nasty shade of brown and green. His clothes were torn and tattered and looked as though they'd never been washed. The one thing that hadn't changed was his eyes. They were as deep and as dark as ever. Hermione jerked out of her reverie when Draco turned his eyes upon her. "Yes?" Hermione asked shakily from under his penetrating stare.

"What has he told you? And why have you come?"

"Blaise has told me nothing and I am here because Blaise brought me."

Draco turned back to Blaise "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why! Why's you bring her here! If you were going to look for me, look by yourself!"

"Why? Because this forest is no place for her? Well, guess what! She wouldn't be here if it weren't for you!"

"You traitor! You could've come by yourself! You could've asked me on your own even though you know the answer!"

"Oh, I forgot!" Blaise said sarcastically. "That 'hole' in your heart you've been talking about. Well, if you do have a 'hole' why don't you fix it?"

"Why you- That's why you brought her here, isn't it?"

"So what if it is?"

"You did! You brought her here on purpose!"

"Why not? It was the only plan I had!"

"I don't care! I'm never going back!"

"Yes, you will, whether you like it or not!  
"That's enough!" Hermione yelled. Both boys looked at her with blazing eyes. "I already have to listen to Harry and Ron every other night. I don't need to hear you two. Will someone please tell me what's going on here? None of what you are saying is making sense."

"Not here, Hermione. At school," Blaise said.

"No! I already told you I'm not going back!" Draco said wildly.

"Then where do you propose we go? It's getting dark!" Blaise yelled.

"She doesn't need to be told anything!"

"Why not? She needs to know why she's here! It's not fair to her!"

"Blaise, it's not up to you! Guess whose choice it is? Mine!"

"I don't care whose choice it is! We came in here to find you. We've found you. Now what?" Hermione asked, interrupting them again.

"I'll tell you what! You two are going to leave and tell no one I'm alive. I like being thought of as dead!"

"I don't care if you like being dead! You are coming with us and going to Dumbledore. Or, you let us walk out of here. But then you have a problem. You can't stop us from blabbing to Dumbledore. Then the whole school will be sent in here after you," Blaise said.

"You wouldn't dare!" Draco glared at him.

"You can't stop us, Draco," Hermione said.

"What will you do, Draco?" Blaise asked.

Draco glared at him. He had just opened his mouth when his eyes widened. He transformed back into a hawk and took off. Spiders burst through the brush behind them. Hermione and Blaise took off running. Hermione pulled ahead of Blaise. She looked behind her to see if Blaise was alright. He wasn't behind her. He had turned another way; however, four or five spiders were chasing her.

"Great!" Hermione muttered. A shrill cry echoed above her. She ducked as Draco soared over her head and attacked the spiders. He landed beside Hermione and transformed. He grabbed her hand and dragged her along behind him. They pushed through the trees and soon stopped. Draco dropped her hand and walked toward a small wooden hut. He turned and looked at her.

"You coming or not?" Hermione jumped slightly. He turned to walk ahead. She took a couple steps and gasped. Draco stopped walking. "What now?"

"They got you." There was a large gash on his back.

"So? They got you too."

"Oh." Hermione looked down at her bleeding leg. "Still, they got your back."

"It doesn't matter. Get in, now." Draco walked into the hut followed by Hermione. A small man-made bed lay in the corner. A fireplace faced it. A cabinet and dresser sat against another wall. A chair sat in the corner opposite the bed. Draco sat on the bed and lay on his stomach. Hermione wandered around quietly. She glanced at Draco occasionally. When she was pretty sure he was a sleep, she crept over to the chair. She picked it up and sat it by his bed. She whispered a spell and a bowl of water appeared at her feet. Hermione conjured a rag and dripped it in the water. She lowered it to Draco's back. He flinched when it touched. Hermione placed her hand on Draco's head. He relaxed. Hermione cleaned his wound carefully and bound it. Hermione fingered Draco's dirty hair while gazing intently at his face. She sighed and removed her hand. Draco's face contorted into a discontented expression. His mouth formed a small frown.

Hermione quickly placed her hand back on his forehead. He relaxed. Hermione sighed and studied his face. He tilted his head to where her hand was resting on his cheek. "If only you knew…" Hermione whispered. "Why won't you come back? I don't understand. You could go to Dumbledore about your father. What's the real reason? They say I'm the smartest girl in school. If that's so, then why do I not understand? You look so innocent. I wish you were. It wouldn't be so hard to admit…" Hermione trailed off. She looked at her feet.

Something cold landed on her hand. She jumped and tried to look at it, but her eyes were caught by Draco's. He looked up at her with the same innocent expression he had in his sleep. "Admit what?" he asked quietly.

"I-I…" Hermione stuttered. His eyes were holding her still. She felt herself reddening. There was a crash outside and Draco jumped up. Hermione and Draco ran outside. Blaise was hanging upside down in a spider's pincers.

"Blaise!" Draco yelled. He spun around and looked at Hermione. "Please, pack all my things and send them ahead of us to the edge of the forest." Hermione nodded and ran into the hut. She fit everything in two bags. She made them zoom ahead of them and ran outside the hut. The spiders were gone. Blaise was half way holding Draco up.

"Hermione, do you think you can help him while I lead us out of here?" Blaise asked.

"O-of course!" Blaise transferred Draco's weight to her shoulders. Hermione rushed after Blaise. It was dark now and they could hardly see. Still, they pressed on. They were about three miles from the edge of the forest when Blaise stopped.

He signaled Hermione quietly. "What now?" she asked.

"I'm not sure."

Draco shifted on her shoulders and groaned. "What happened?" he froze and looked around. "What are they doing here? Can't they mind their own business? There's never any peace in this forest with those blasted centaurs!" Draco muttered.

"Centaurs? Oh, no…" Hermione whispered.

"You are not welcome here, humans." A centaur emerged behind them. "Your kind does not belong here. You belong in your world where you know the laws."

Another centaur emerged. "Bane, I see no reason why we should not let them pass. The other centaurs decided to help the humans now. Why can't you do the same?"

"Ronan, this one has been in our forest for over three months!" Bane pointed to Draco.

"So, what difference does that make? You know that hawk you said you admire, because he is free to fly?"

"Yes. What about it?" Bane asked impatiently.

"You are looking at him. Does he look free now?" Bane stumbled back a few feet. "You should learn to look past what you see, Bane. It's not always what it seems." Ronan turned to the three stunned humans. "You are free to come and go as you please. Inform you headmaster of this."

They nodded and started to walk again. After a few minutes Blaise spoke. "Do you mind if I go ahead, Hermione?"

"No, of course not. We'll meet you at the castle, I suppose?" Blaise nodded and ran off.

Draco and Hermione soon reached the edge of the forest. They sighed deeply as they sat down by the lake. Draco turned his head to Hermione. He looked at her curiously.

"Admit what?" he asked simply.

Hermione jumped, having been caught off guard. "What?"

"You said that if I were innocent it would make it easier to admit. Admit what?"

"You were awake the whole time, weren't you?"

"Maybe." There was silence for a moment. "Admit what?"

Hermione turned to him in frustration. "Maybe I don't want to admit it now!"

"Maybe, you think I'll laugh."

"Maybe you don't need to know."

"Maybe I do. Maybe, it has something to do with me?" Hermione stared at him.

"Maybe I don't want you to know."

"Maybe I do."

"Maybe that doesn't matter."

"Maybe it does."

"Maybe I don't care what you think."

"Maybe you do. Maybe, you're in denial."

"Maybe I'm not!"

"Then why won't you look at me?" He turned her around.

"Maybe you wouldn't understand."

"Maybe, I would. Please, Hermione?"

She stared at him. He leaned in and kissed her. Hermione almost bolted she was so shocked. Draco pinned her there by her hands. Hermione's mind started to melt. She hardly realized where she was. She only focused on Draco. A stray thought floated across Hermione's mind. She mumbled against Draco's lips. "I admit, I love you."

Draco smiled. The 'hole' would never be heard of again.

I know, that was a pathetic ending. Sorry bout that. Anyway, here's your verse. See you next time.

"…Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed," says the Lord who has compassion on you.

Isaiah 54:10

Teenlaunch


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